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US scraps 'virtual fence' along Mexico border
The US government has decided to scrap plans for a controversial "virtual fence" on its border with Mexico, which has been plagued with problems since inception in 2005, and instead develop a program tailored to different border areas.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said she had informed lawmakers of the decision.
"Following the completion of the department-wide independent, comprehensive assessment of US Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Secure Border Initiative network (SBInet) program, DHS briefed Congress today on my decision to end SBInet as originally conceived," she said in a statement.
The program, based on a vast network of sensors and surveillance cameras at a cost of around a billion dollars, had already been temporarily suspended in March 2010 due to cost overruns and missed deadlines, Napolitano said.
"SBInet cannot meet its original objective of providing a single, integrated border security technology solution," Napolitano said, adding there was no "'one-size-fits-all' solution to meet our border technology needs, and this new strategy is tailored to the unique needs of each border region."
The new system uses funds and equipment that had been geared towards the old network, such as the sensors and surveillance equipment.
In 2011 DHS agents will be visiting the border "to determine the optimal combination of technology for each region," Napolitano said.
Independent Senator Joe Lieberman, who heads the powerful Homeland Security committee in the Senate, welcomed the decision.
"From the start, SBInet's one-size-fits-all approach was unrealistic," he said, adding the new effort was "a far wiser approach, and I hope it will be more cost effective."
Democratic lawmakers also approved the action to end SBInet, conceived under former president George W. Bush, though Republicans voiced worry that the current administration of President Barack Obama was not doing enough to protect the southern border region.
"I continue to have very serious concerns about the Obama administration’s lack of urgency to secure the border," said Peter King, who chairs the House Committee on Homeland Security, where there is now a Republican majority.
The government has repeatedly pushed back against such claims, noting that Obama's action in recent years has provided a more guarded border in Mexico than ever before, with technology deployment working alongside some 20,000 border patrol agents and 1,200 National Guard troops.
